Upton Tea Imports

The sun comes out intermittently and teases us with spring, but when it leaves it feels like March. I’m not sure whether to have a fresh or floral spring tea to remind me that warmer days are coming or a darker black tea to warm my core. I spun the wheel and ended up with the last of this very nice Assam—not too heavy, pleasantly fruity, easy to drink straight any time of the day.

Upton is pretty spot on with their descriptions. This tea has more body than some of the super Assams from Marangi; it’s neat and clean with almost no bitterness. A very satisfying mid-priced everyday Assam.

I’ve come to expect excellence from the Goomtee estate and this selection is a perfect exemplar of a top shelf second flush. It’s clean and dry, and the floral high notes are balanced by a deeper, toastier base. There are not a lot of pyrotechnics here like you might find in some Castleton or Arya teas but I prefer this deep, steady and classic muscatel cup.

I was looking forward to trying this tea, but I was a little bit disappointed. It was fruity, but not very buttery or sweet. I increased the amount of leaf, which helped some, but overall, a rather flat affair. Rarely am I disappointed by an Upton tea.

Every year I look forward to the second flush season with eagerness and trepidation. I’ve always found it a challenge to find that full-bodied, fruity tea that distinguishes itself from the more flowery, delicate first flushes. I’ve had some luck with Thurbo and Castleton, but in the middle price range I don’t think I’ll do better than this selection from the Goomtee Estate. This is definitely not a shy tea or a late bloomer; from the first sip you’re hit with classic Darjeeling flavor in the old school manner. It can turn a tad bitter if it sits too long, but the tea is so delicious, it usually doesn’t sit around too long!

Last tea of the morning and I’m just not impressed. While this is certainly different from English and Irish, possibly more pungent, but still not malty, I’m not really getting the honey notes from the Yunnan and it lacks smoothness. I feel like this needs a rebrew but I’ve had too much caffeine for the morning. Sugar only intensifies the sharpness while cream does smooth it over, I don’t care for it as much as the two Irish blends. Will withhold rating for now.

Edit 2/15/12: really this is just intolerable for me but will not rate due to the fact I haven’t had another Scottish blend and I don’t care much for breakfast teas but I’d take River Shannon or even Bond Street over this any day. So much tannin, bleh! It stands up well to milk but not even that makes me want to drink it. Best thing about this tea is the gorgeous red hue of the straight liquor.

My order of samples from Upton came this morning just in time for breakfast. I ordered mostly white teas but also two Lapsang Souchongs, the much acclaimed Baker Street Afternoon Blend and some breakfast blends for comparison, because for a dollar each why not?

Now I am not really not a breakfast tea person, I don’t drink much black tea in general due to caffeine sensitivity but if I do it is one type of whole leaf tea. So my only point of comparison before this tasting is Teavana’s English Breakfast, their now retired Assam Gold Rain and Celyon from a gift set.

So I brewed this in cast-iron with filtered water at the recommended 212 for 3 mins. The smell was not as strong as I expected and the taste certainly not as malty. This tasted like a nice clean non-China black like you would use for ice tea and I will probably end of let my husband use the rest for that purpose.

I didn’t get much Assam from this (but remember I don’t have a whole lot of experience with Assam) but the high notes I would assume are from the Ceylon, they were very “bright” though probably grounded and mellowed a bit by the Assam. I wouldn’t call this a complex tea but it wasn’t a singular note either.

I decided to try it with some cream and sugar (I’ve honestly never had tea with cream and sugar with the exception of random mate lattes our barista makes at work- Teavana that I only have a sip of) but figured this was part of the experience and would be part of the evaluation. I can see why folks take Assam and blends this way, it was pleasant though I think would have been better with rock sugar (but I was adding it to the cup not the pot). The other teas I sampled (Irish, Scottish and River Shannon) actually took better to the cream, so I think I shall give this to the husband to do what he will.

Its definitely not a bad tea, its neither bitter nor bland, its just not what I look for in hot tea, like the hint of butteryness I got from the River Shannon blend. I am really looking forward to the Baker Street blend tonight though with the husband while we watch Sherlock (new BBC).

Edit to add: made this tea for my husband this morning, his reaction as expected- “it tastes like regular tea” which is not to say he didn’t like it, Teavana does not carry a good “regular tea” for him to make iced, though he loves his now retired Nine Dragon Golden Needle, we have over 2lbs stocked up. He also really like the Baker Street Afternoon blend which I need to revisit and review but first impression is it was quite good bit it didn’t wow me.

Tea of the morning……

Thank you to Amy Oh for this one! I had really been wanting to try this one in my recent quest for a new breakfast tea!

Well, I cannot seem to drink this one without milk! Hello, robust tea! It has a very strong malty flavor, and this one is a bit too strong and brisk for my tastes (I seem to be kind of a wimp when it comes to hearty teas…who knew?) Since I like adding milk to my tea only on occasion, I am pretty sure this is not the breakfast tea for me. However, for those of you who enjoy a good hearty, malty, brisk tea that stands up very well to milk, this is a good one for you to try. I do have some more left and might try a light on leaf cuppa to see how it goes.

Thank you Charles for sending me a sample of this tea. I wanted to comment on it this morning while I was drinking it but my computer at home is acting funny.

I don’t believe I’ve had a Kemmun before. I brewed this in the tetsubin which I am using for mostly black tea these days. I think I erred a little too much on the side of caution and did not add enough leaf. I liked this though. It was a light brown, woody and smooth tea with some smoke in the aftertaste. I’m not a huge fan of smoke but I didn’t mind it here it seemed very unobtrusive. I tried adding soymilk and that was not a good idea, I preferred the taste of it plain.

Odd. I’m not sure about this one.

I’ve been dying to write this one up for several days, but had to consult with a buddy to see what loveliness lurked in the little foil sharing pouch.

This Keemun is superlative. The dry scent is pretty keemuny, maybe a little lighter than some, but don’t let that fool you. It is rich and brothy and has beautiful harvest-season burgundy grape notes to it. Straight up, no additives whatsoever.